


drip drip drip

by pakiinnit



Category: Stray Kids (Band)
Genre: Cats, Chan's horrible hair decisions, Gen, Love?, M/M, Minho's scathing commentary, Water, chan as a struggling artist, cooking competitions, minho as a semi-successful choreographer, no beta we die like men, omg they were roommates
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-04-18
Updated: 2019-12-21
Packaged: 2020-01-15 18:34:33
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 3
Words: 10,612
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/18504700
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/pakiinnit/pseuds/pakiinnit
Summary: what the hell. he looked down. there was water on the floor. a lot of water on the floor. chan followed the direction of where the water was coming from and opened the door.only to come face to face with a very angry, and very beautiful man holding an umbrella over his head and taking turns between screaming at the water pouring in from the ceiling and crying.(or the forced roommates! minchan au)





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> uhhhh

 

💧

 

drip.

 

minho blinked awake, confused. he turned to the right and squinted at his alarm clock. it wasn’t even six yet. what in god’s name had woken him up.

 

drip.

 

minho spluttered, flailing out of his bed and landing on the carpeted floor with a thump. his tailbone began to ache, sparks of dull pain shooting up his back, “fuck,” he muttered, using one hand to support his back and the other to wipe the moisture off his face.

 

“where did…?” he muttered, looking at his hands, perplexed. he was one hundred percent sure he wasn’t dreaming, and he was inside his bedroom, in his apartment.

 

drip.

 

drip.

 

drip. drip.

 

the water dropped onto his sheets, causing a wet spot to materialize before minho’s eyes. he stared at it for a few seconds, not completely sure what was happening. was it raining?

 

drip.

 

he looked up.

 

 _ah_.

 

drip.

 

he looked back down at the pooling droplets of water; the sheets were getting damper. with a put-upon sigh he entered his bathroom and grabbed his mop bucket. he’d put it there last night to clean, but it seemed like he’d need to use it for now.

 

drip. drop.

 

minho observed the single drop of water in the bucket and then looked up once again, trying to pinpoint where the problem was.

 

drip.

 

there. right next to his light fixture too, that was going to be a problem. minho contemplated calling someone to fix it, but a single glance at his online bank account changed his mind. he sighed, tired. the sun wasn’t even out, and he could no longer sleep on his bed with a bucket there. minho grabbed a pair of sweatpants and dragged his feet into the kitchen, he could just get a head start on his day, and if he changed his mind at any time he could crash on his couch for a few hours.

 

minho took out some milk from the fridge and put the kettle on, placing the milk next to a cup with a tea bag in it. he wriggled into his sweatpants and snapped the band against his skin, the sting snapping him awake.

 

“right then,” he muttered to himself, shuffling closer to the cup and staring at the little cat photo imprinted onto the ceramic. it was a picture of his cat soonie, changbin had gotten it for him for his birthday last year. minho loved it, it was his second favourite cup.

 

minho studied the way soonie’s big eyes looked in the grainy ceramic and smiled, peering around the kitchen for any sign of his wayward cat. he was always slinking around the kitchen, purposeful and watchful, waiting – but minho couldn’t find him. maybe he was still asleep. last he’d seen of his cat was around nine hours ago on the little bed minho had bought him and placed in soonie’s favourite spot in the living room. it had the best ambiance and got the most amount of sunlight through the windows.

 

from his spot against the kitchen counter, minho couldn’t see into his living room, but he made a note in his mind to check on soonie as soon as he finished his tea.

 

the whistling of the kettle brought his attention back to his cup. he blinked slowly and then poured in half a cup full of boiling water, watching as the water slowly turned a red-amber. the simple motion of pulling the tea bag up and down was soothing, so minho continued to do it while he brought the milk bottle over. he poured the milk in until the cup was three-quarters of the way full and then stopped, putting the milk back in the fridge and grabbing the sugar bowl on the way back.

 

he rummaged around his kitchen drawer for a tea spoon, frowning when he realised he didn’t have any clean ones. minho glanced at the sink. it was full of dirty dishes and glasses. his frown deepened, he didn’t want to do the dishes yet, but he needed a spoon.

 

minho looked from the sugar bowl to the cup, soonie’s face staring innocently back at him.

 

“yeah,” he nodded, “i think so too,” and then poured the sugar straight from the bowl and into the cup, stopping when he deemed it okay.

 

he placed the bowl back into its original place and grabbed the cup, taking a chopstick out and using it in lieu of a spoon to mix the tea. he was satisfied with the brown colouring and as he took a sip – he hummed contentedly – with the taste too.

 

the satisfaction vaporized once he walked back into his room and found it flooded.

 

“what the fuck.” minho clutched his cup closer to his chest, astonished at the scene before him. the water dripping from the roof was now pouring through, like one of those fancy showers he’d used when he’d gone on holiday with his parents when he was eighteen, the water gushing through the roof from tiny holes. except at eighteen he’d been delighted, now, at almost twenty-two, he was horrified as he watched the water slosh over his bed and onto the floor, tiny waves of it hitting his bare feet and making them wet.

 

“what the fuck,” he repeated, snapping into attention. he sucked in a breath, took a big gulp of his tea, placed the cup on his dresser, and then jogged over to his closet. he opened it slightly, just enough to get his hand through, but not for the water to splash into and ruin his clothes. once he got a hold of what he wanted he yanked it out and quickly shut the closet door.

 

“why me,” minho’s back hit the closet door as he slipped on the water quickly increasing on the floor, getting higher by the minute. he hit the floor on his already bruised tailbone, groaning in pain, and now he was _wet_ on top of that.

 

drip.

 

the water slid over the bridge of his nose and landed on his lips. minho wiped it away angrily, sucked in a deep breath, and let out a scream.

 

 

 

💧

 

 

 

“look channie hyung,” jisung said over the phone, excited, “just drill it.”

 

chan pinched the bridge of his nose, growing slowly frustrated. he glanced at the picture frame in his hand and then at the drill by his feet. jisung had been nagging him all week to put the _precious hand-made frame that i made with my own hands, hyung!_ on his living room wall and he’d been woken up at midnight to a knock on his door. on the other side there was just a small box and a note that said _have fun!_ _:)_

chan glared down at the smiley face, he’d plastered it on the frame because he wasn’t sure what to put into the frame, but now it seemed almost mocking, laughing at him for his incompetency.

 

“are you listening, hyung?” jisung asked, voice pitching high and loud over the phone speakers. chan moved it away from his ears, putting it on speakerphone and setting it on the moving boxes he’d brought his stuff in a year ago and was now using as a coffee table. it looked like it would collapse any second now, chan had fixed it with duct tape five times so he wouldn’t be surprised. disappointed, but not surprised.

 

“yeah, sungie, i am,” chan reassured the younger boy, swapping the frame for the drill. it was sleek and black and looked expensive, not something he expected jisung to have, let alone be able to afford.

 

“where’d you get this drill from, by the way?” he asked, curious. he rolled it around in his hands, looking at it from every direction. he’d helped his dad with some of the handy-man work at home, but he’d never been allowed to drill the walls, this was a first.

 

“changbin,” jisung said.

 

chan shook his head, of course. why changbin would need a drill though, he couldn’t even begin to figure out.

 

“are you ready, hyung?” jisung asked, his voice muffled slightly, as if he was moving away from the phone. there was the sound of crumpling paper before his voice got clearer, “cuz i sure as hell am.”

 

chan sighed, “yeah, sure, i guess.”

 

“good enough for me!” jisung laughed.

 

“alright then,” chan let out a long breath, prepping himself for what was about to happen, and plugged the drill into the socket on the wall, switching it on, “lets geddit.”

 

“let’s geddit!” jisung repeated, giggling.

 

 

 

💧

 

 

 

“oh my gosh.”

 

chan stared at the wall in front of him, horrified. he could briefly hear jisung shouting from the other end of the phone, but he was too mesmerized by the biggest mistake of his life to listen to what he was saying.

 

drilling had been fine, he’d followed jisung’s instructions as he used the blueprint on his phone to guide chan to where he was supposed to drill and where he wasn’t. he’d made a hole, only to realise it was too small, and then made it bigger. after hanging it up and sending a picture to jisung, he’d gotten an unsatisfactory reply back.

 

 

(“what do you mean you don’t like it?” chan had stared at the phone in his hand, incredulous, “it’s not your house.”

 

“hyung it’s horrible,” jisung had replied, forcing him to drill again or face jisung’s whining anytime he came over.)

 

 

and now here he was, staring at a busted pipe from a hole inside his wall. there was water leaking down the pipe. a lot of water. it wasn’t coming inside his flat so chan wondered if he should report it to his landlord, but reasoning won out and he sent him a very apologetic text, knowing it wouldn’t be read until the morning. he glanced at the clock, it was only three at night, which meant the pipe and the _hole in his wall_ would not be fixed for another five hours.

 

chan bit his lip, worried. he couldn’t afford to call a plumber right now, hell he probably couldn’t afford a plumber _ever_. his music wasn’t selling and working at the restaurant down the street could only pay for so much. he’d spent his last big bucks on his rent last week and was getting dangerously close to not having enough money for food if his work kept cutting his hours.

 

with a defeated sigh chan crumpled to the floor, reaching for his phone and putting it back on speaker phone. it turned out jisung _had_ been shouting, period. the boy still was, voice getting hoarser, “jisung. jisung, dude, shut up.”

 

jisung kept shouting, seemingly not able to hear chan over the volume of his own voice.

 

chan took in a deep breath and let out a scream.

 

jisung stopped. chan stopped – except the screaming didn’t. there was a scream that wasn’t coming from chan nor jisung. chan stared down at his phone, confused, “is that you?”

 

“hyung! why are you shouting? are you okay? do you need me to come over?” jisung fretted, loudly. chan winced at the sheer volume of his friend’s voice and told jisung to calm down.

 

“sorry, hyung.” jisung apologized, voice softer now, a little ashamed. chan felt his heart twist painfully, he didn’t like hearing jisung like that.

 

“it’s okay, don’t worry about it bro,” chan laughed, trying to lighten the mood. jisung didn’t seem to believe him.

 

“what happened?”

 

chan sighed, looking at the hole in his wall and turned around, turning his back to it. he didn’t need to be reminded that he was an idiot for the whole conversation, “the hole is kinda…” he trailed off, unsure how to explain. he took a look at the time and decided just not to, “it’s a little big, but that’s it. i’ll get the landlord to look at it tomorrow.”

 

“that’s it?” jisung questioned, there was shuffling on his side again, making what he said indecipherable.

 

“sorry, what was that?” chan asked.

 

“i said, how big is it?” jisung repeated.

 

chan closed his eyes, “big enough to be a problem.”

 

“fuck, im so sorry, hyung,” jisung sounded sad again, which was the opposite of what he’d been hoping to accomplish.

 

“like i said, it’s fine,” chan reassured him, “i’ll deal with it tomorrow. it’s late, how about you get some sleep?”

 

“you sure?” jisung asked, one last time.

 

chan smiled, “yeah, sungie. it’s fine.”

 

“okay,” jisung didn’t sound entirely convinced, but he no longer sounded down, so chan would count it as a victory. jisung let out a yawn and bid him good night.

 

“night, sungie,” chan said. when the end call tone filtered through the speakers, he let out a loud groan. things were _not_ fine. in fact, they were far from fine. so far that fine was all the way on the moon right now.

 

chan looked down at the phone in his hands, and then back at the hole. yup, just as bad as before. with another sigh he stood up, nearly stumbling when he heard a scream from under him.

 

“what the hell,” he muttered, looking at his floor. the scream continued on, high and rough, endless. chan lifted his foot, hesitantly – and then jumped.

 

the screaming stopped.

 

“huh,” chan shrugged, walking over to the drill and putting it back in its box. he placed the frame on his kitchen counter and got himself a glass of water. as he was about to take a sip the screaming started again, startling him so bad he dropped the glass and it fell to the floor, shattering to pieces.

 

“fuck!” chan hissed as he picked up a piece and immediately dropped it, blood pooling out of the wound on his finger and dripping to the floor, staining the floor and the surrounding glass in red.

 

“shit,” he muttered to himself, walking over carefully to the sink and running his finger under water. he grabbed a kitchen towel from the side and wrapped it around his hand. he looked down at the glass and blood on the floor and listened to the screaming start again. whoever was living under him was _insane_. was no one else hearing this?

 

chan walked over to his door, looking out the peephole. nothing. no one seemed to be up and outside. with a groan he unlocked his door, struggling a little with the lock because of the towel still wrapped around his hand. he let out a triumphant little hushed sound, mindful of his neighbours, when he succeeded in opening his door.

 

“chan one, door zero,” he laughed to himself, shutting the door behind him and walking down the corridor.

 

the lights were flickering in and out, resembling that of a horror movie. chan shivered involuntarily at the thought before hurrying down to the lift, the scream, he was sure, had come from directly underneath him. which meant it was coming from flat 325. he’d only been in this apartment complex for a year now, and he barely knew the people on his own floor let alone the other three floors underneath him, but he was sure that after today he would make an effort to ignore whoever lived in 325.

 

 

 

💧

 

 

 

the screaming was _definitely_ coming from 325.

 

chan stood in front of the door. it was quiet now, but just five minutes ago he’d heard someone let out a particularly loud wail, almost like that of a cat’s. he wondered if whoever lived here had cats. he wouldn’t be surprised if they were that one middle-aged lady he’d seen walking around the front of the complex every morning carrying her cat in her hands and muttering about ‘today’s youth’ as she glared at everyone. she was always dressed in suits though, sleek and expensive. chan hoped she didn’t live here.

 

when another scream started, chan decided it was enough. he knocked on the door.

 

no response. the scream continued.

 

another knock. nothing. the screaming got louder.

 

a lock clicked open and chan brightened up, finally –

 

“who the fuck is that!?” came an angry shout from behind him. a man, a little taller than chan was standing there. his beady eyes shot around before landing on chan, narrowing distastefully, “stop whoever that is right now!” he screeched and slammed his door shut.

 

chan heard the lock click shut again and turned around, annoyed. if the man could hear that why wasn’t _he_ doing anything about it.

 

“hey!” he slammed his hand against the door, turning the door handle to get the attention of the person inside, “open –“

 

the door swung open, slamming onto the other wall with loud thwack.

 

“ – up?” chan finished, staring inside. he entered the flat, confused. there was no one here. he stopped walking when he heard a splash.

 

 _what the hell_. he looked down. there was water on the floor. a lot of water on the floor. chan followed the direction of where the water was coming from and opened the door.

 

only to come face to face with a very angry, and _very_ beautiful man holding an umbrella over his head and taking turns between screaming at the water pouring in from the ceiling and crying.

 

“uhh,” chan uttered, tongue tied and unsure of what he was supposed to do now. the room was flooded and there was a man crying with an umbrella over his head, “excuse me?”

the man stopped crying instantly, whipping around. he screamed when he saw chan, throwing his umbrella at him, and then grabbing his clock off the side table and throwing that too.

 

“wait!” chan shouted, swatting the umbrella away and catching the clock. that only seemed to turn the man from frightened and startled to annoyed and pissed because he grabbed a paper weight and brought it up, readying it as if he was about to throw that too.

 

“wait! please!” chan repeated, hands held up in surrender. this was insane.

 

“who are you?” the man said, paper weight still held high, arms tense. he was slowly being drenched by the water pouring from above him, but he didn’t seem to care, eyes bloodshot and posture defensive.

 

chan tried to slowly walk closer, moving to pick up the discarded umbrella, but the man let out a scream, holding the paper weight even higher so chan stopped.

 

“okay,” chan placated, “okay, sorry. i heard screaming and came down to check if everything was okay, i’m from apartment 225.”

 

the man lowered his hand and almost looked sheepish, and then he registered the second part of the question and looked up, water dripping down his face and neck and onto his –

 

 _holy fuck wait, he’s not wearing a shirt_. chan’s brain short circuited slightly and he felt his face flush. the man in front of him didn’t seem to notice thankfully, too busy getting angry at him.

 

“so, you’re the cause of,” he gestured towards the flooded room, “all of this?”

 

“uh, i think so,” chan rubbed the back of his neck, embarrassed, “i’m so sorry, it was an accident.”

 

the man gave him a deadpan look, unimpressed with his apology, and then sighed, the exhale seeming to deflate his body. he put the paper weight back and walked over, brushing past chan to enter his living room. he jumped onto the couch and lay there.

 

chan looked at it happen from his perch at the bedroom door until the man beckoned him over, “i’m minho.”

 

chan blinked, “uh, chan, nice to meet you.”

 

minho let out a laugh, but it was dry, “forgive me if i don’t return the sentiment.”

 

“right,” chan shifted from one foot to another, unsure of what to do. minho watched him for a while, eyes narrowed and moving from his head to toe, making chan sweat. minho had a cold stare, unfriendly. chan was never sure how to interact with people like that. people were rarely unfriendly to him. this was now the second time today he’d felt unwelcome and he didn’t like it.

 

“is your flat flooded, too?” minho asked, sitting up. his eyes never left chan’s face.

 

chan looked away, making a conscious effort to control his face, “uh no, just a broken pipe and a hole in my wall.”

 

minho scrunched his eyebrows, confused, “in your wall?”

 

“like i said,” chan sighed, “this was all an accident.”

 

minho nodded, but he didn’t look like he understood. it was fine, chan could live with not having to explain what had happened tonight to anyone except his landlord. actually, he’d much prefer that. for some reason he didn’t want this man to think he was incompetent.

 

“so, no water?” minho asked again.

 

“nah,” chan said, relaxing a little now that minho wasn’t analyzing him anymore, more focused on looking around his living room. he got up and entered his bedroom, coming out with a gym bag and some slippers. he dropped them onto the floor and slipped them on, then walked over to the other side of the living room, bending down to grab something. chan couldn’t see what it was from here, but as minho got closer, he saw that it was a cat.

 

it was cute, white and light brown, striped and bright eyed. it slumped lazily onto minho’s arms, cuddling in close. minho cooed at the cat, kissing its nose and rubbing his cheek against it. he looked cute like this, a small smile softening his features and making him seem more approachable. he walked closer, holding the cat outstretched in his arms.

 

chan stared at the cat. the cat stared at him.

 

“meow,” the cat purred, tail flicking softly underneath it.

 

chan blinked and then held it carefully as minho pushed it into his arms, “hold him for a minute.”

 

“uh,” chan gaped at minho and then down at the cat.

 

“his name’s soonie, don’t drop him or i’ll cut you,” minho warned, smiling warmly at soonie and then shooting a much sharper smile at chan.

 

chan missed the cold scrutinizing look already. he watched soonie, but the cat was content to just lay in his arms, purring softly. he felt a smile break across his face. he wasn’t much of a cat person, having a dog was always what he’d wanted, but soonie seemed sweet. lazy and soft.

 

“he likes you,” minho’s voice came from right next to him, startling chan. he clutched soonie closer, alarmed at minho’s proximity to his face. he was leaning down, cooing at soonie. chan looked him over to spot what he’d gone to grab and found that he’d put on a shirt and grabbed a box of cat food, he was carrying it in his arms and had his gym bag slung over his shoulder.

 

“let’s go,” minho said, grabbing chan’s attention.

 

“huh?”

 

minho gave him an odd look and then raised an eyebrow, motioning towards the door with his head, “let’s go, i can’t open the door with this in my hands.”

 

“right,” chan almost ran over to the door in his haste, face warming up. he held it open as minho walked out, one hand securely around soonie, the cat didn’t seem to mind the jostling, but chan tried to make it as smooth as possible.

 

“so, where are you headed?” chan asked when minho just stood there, staring at him, unmoving.

 

minho gave him that look again, “205, lead the way.”

 

and then he started walking toward the lift.

 

“wait!” chan called after him. minho didn’t stop. he looked down at soonie, he just purred again, face swiveling between minho and chan as if telling him to follow his owner.

 

chan obeyed.

 

 

💧


	2. lol there's more?

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> “bed,” chan blurted out. 
> 
> “not even a first date?” minho fluttered his eyelashes at chan. 
> 
> god, i wish. chan gulped, staring at his lips.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> hi

 

.

 

soonie lay still in his arms as chan petted him. he was now fast asleep, curled on his left arm, close to his chest. the gentl  _thump thump thump_ of his heart must have been soothing for the irate cat - that was probably why minho hadn't taken his cat from him yet.

 

being seated on the floor was hurting him now, legs cramping up, but he didn’t want to wake soonie up either – so he sat and watched.

 

minho was in front of him, looking at his broken-down wall and busted pipe in horror, chan wasn’t sure if there was a faint flicker of amusement or irritation so he kept quiet. minho had set down his gym bag of spare belongings down near the kitchen counter and had called an emergency plumber to come fix his pipes.

 

he’d pocketed his phone and thrown a “we’re splitting it,” over his shoulder without asking chan.

 

 

(when chan had offered to pay for the damages to his apartment minho had rolled his eyes, “i’ve got insurance.”)

 

 

minho turned around, abrupt and without warning, “got any duct tape?”

 

chan blinked, hands paused mid-motion from where he was stroking soonie. minho’s eyes narrowed as they travelled from his face, to the cat, to the hand holding the cat. he swiped them over the kitchen counter and then back to chan. he rolled his eyes, exasperation dripping in his features, and changed the question, “maybe a first aid kit?”

 

he looked sharper like that; a bit older. chan blinked again, unsure about minho’s age and not sure if he should ask, “third drawer, left side of the sink, i think,” chan answered, hand moving again to stroke soonie softly. he wondered if it was as soothing for soonie as it was for him.

 

minho nodded and walked away, mumbling something under his breath that was too soft for chan’s ears to pick up. he came back with a roll of duct tape chan was ninety percent sure was actually jisung’s and an impressive looking first aid kit he remembered woojin bringing over last month to patch him up after he’d let himself bleed because he was in - woojin’s words -  _an idiot_.

 

minho dropped down to his knees in front of him. he picked soonie up and got up again, gently laying him down on the only piece of furniture in the vicinity – the beaten looking recliner he’d bought at a charity shop as soon as he’d moved in. it was comfy despite everything, the loose threading, the creaking noises – so chan tried not to be too embarrassed by the state of it. minho came back quickly and immediately grabbed a hold of the hand chan had wrapped – a now bloody – towel around.

 

his hand was warm in his, even through the towel. chan wondered if minho ran hotter than most humans, like a cat almost. his lips lifted from the corners at the thought and minho shot him a curious look but otherwise didn’t comment.

 

“how’d this happen?” he murmured, asking but not really. it was the type of question people didn’t care if it was answered or not, minho seemed like the type to ask a lot of those, too caught up in his own world to really listen. his attention was focused intently on unwrapping his hand and cleaning the excess dried blood.

 

when he swiped the wound over with an antiseptic wipe it began to flow freely again, blood dripping slowly from his hand to the towel on the floor between them. chan winced, but minho didn’t look up, just continued to clean his hand. when he was satisfied, he took a roll of bandage from the first aid kit and unrolled it around his cut, tightening it enough to stay secure but not enough to hurt.

 

there was a gentleness to minho when he wasn’t looking, when he was focused on something. maybe it was because he didn’t seem to care too much what other people thought, at least, that was what chan seemed to get out of their brief interactions.

 

“alright?” he asked, looking chan in the eye. chan blinked twice, caught off guard by how – how _big_ his eyes were, and bright, like looking at constellations at night. his heart skipped a beat and he nodded once.

 

“thanks.” softly, the moment felt oddly soft.

 

minho continued to hold his hand, and chan looked down, surprised. he hadn’t realised until he briefly tightened it to get chan to look up again. there was a look in his eyes that chan wanted to decipher but knew he wouldn’t be able to. minho seemed like the type of person who didn’t wear his heart on his sleeve, not like chan did.

 

“don’t mention it.” minho said gently and got up, finally letting go of his hand and breaking up whatever had been occurring. the loss of eye contact left chan a little breathless, or maybe it was the loss of warmth as minho moved further away.

 

chan ignored the itch in his chest and watched as minho placed the kit on the kitchen counter and then strode back to stand in front of – what chan was now going to call – the wall of shame.

 

minho considered the drill and the wall. he then shot chan an increadulous look – as if to say, _really? you did this?_

 

chan shrugged, smiling sheepishly. minho rolled his eyes and started using the tape in his hand to try and staunch the broken pipe. chan wasn’t sure if it was going to work, but minho didn’t want to just sit and wait.

 

after five minutes of aggressive taping, minho stepped aside and chan studied the wall. it seemed to work – sort of. like a pseudo bandage over the wounds of the house, like his hand.

 

when he relayed his thoughts to minho he nodded, as if agreeing, “maybe think before you drill next time.”

 

chan paused, well – okay.

 

there was a knock on the door in the ensuing silence. chan got up as minho let the plumbers in with a polite smile and pointed towards the wall of shame.

 

“i tried to block it a little bit,” minho explained with a shrug when the taller of the two turned to them with her eyebrows raised.

 

“right.” she said, putting down her tool kit. she said something on the side to her companion and then turned back to face them as he quickly got to work behind her. chan couldn’t understand what he was doing or what those tools were, but he was glad the problem would finally be sorted.

 

“which one of you lives in the apartment downstairs?” she asked.

 

chan looked to minho.

 

“why?” minho asked, tone turning a little whinier. he had his hands on his hips in a weird power stance and his lips were pursed. it was cute.

 

the plumber did not think so, her eyes narrowed, “it’s flooded.”

 

“right. yes, of course it is, but can it be fixed?” minho stressed the last word, hands now crossed over his chest. his face was imposing but his stance seemed defensive, as if he was readying himself for a blow. chan contemplated going back to his seat on the ground.

 

“yes,” the woman replied, passing a tool to the man behind her. it was big and metal and that was all chan could understand about it. the water had stopped now.

 

“it will, however, take us some time to properly drain all of the water and make sure the place is safe enough to live in.”

 

“how long will that take?” minho asked, biting his lip with dread. he’d moved to stand next to chan now, and soonie had woken up from all the noise and was trotting his way over to them. chan picked her up, glancing at minho appreciatively when he made no move to take him from him.

 

“give or take a few months.”

 

minho let out a distressed noise – somewhere between a whine and a huff. he glared at chan, “this is all your fault.”

 

chan nodded. he couldn’t take minho seriously when he had his cat in his arms and the boy in question was taking turns to stroke soonie and make kissy faces at him.

 

“sorry.” he said on reflex.

 

he blinked when minho didn’t budge and repeated it again, more sincerely, because he was truly apologetic about the whole mess but it was also late and he was tired, “i’m genuinely so sorry,” and then because his brain to mouth filter wasn’t working he added, “if you have nowhere to stay for the night you could stay here?”

 

minho squinted at him for a little while. chan tried not to let it get to him but the silence from the plumbers as they watched and minho’s sharp assessing look were making him sweat a little under the collar.

 

finally he nodded, eyes softening just a little. chan wasn’t sure if that meant minho was going to take him up on the offer, but it was almost two in the morning and he didn’t think the man had anywhere else to go, and moving out of his home right now would probably be a little too stressful for anybody.

 

chan surveyed his apartment as worry crept up his spine. it wasn’t much and he didn’t have anything that would make minho's stay here easier, he rarely even spent his own time here, much preferring the studio he shared with jisung and changbin over his own home.

 

the most he could offer minho was his bed and take the recliner. he winced at the thought of the night ahead and let out a small sigh.

 

minho tilted his head at him but didn’t ask and for that chan was grateful.

 

when the plumbers finished their job it was almost half past two in the morning and chan had moved on to sitting leaned against the kitchen counter as minho sat on top of it, his legs swinging on either side of chan’s head as they took turns to pass soonie between them. the cat was oddly docile despite the constant jostling.

 

the pipe was no longer leaking water and the hole had been patched up with a thin wooden plank – _just for now_ , the plumber had as she packed their stuff away, _we’ll be back soon to fix the wall proper_.

 

chan got up slowly, knees creaking, and followed the plumbers out the door.

 

“how much will that be?” he asked, taking out his wallet out of his back pocket and displaying his card. he paid the amount with a somber sigh and locked the door behind him, pocketing the receipt he’d been handed.

 

he stopped at the threshold of the kitchen and living room, lips forming a pout – he wasn’t sure of what to do now. his eyes strayed from minho, to soonie sauntering behind the recliner, and then back to minho.

 

he clapped his hands together, shotting minho an apologetic look when he yelped, startled, “so! what do you wanna do now?”

 

he felt oddly like he was at a sleepover.

 

minho raised a single eyebrow at him, disbelief covering his face, “could i dry off? maybe sleep? it’s almost,” he glanced down at his watch, “three in the morning and i’ve got work tomorrow.”

 

“right,” chan coughed, ears heating up, “of course, yeah. let me just get you something to wear.”

 

he ran into his room, not catching whatever minho was saying behind him.

 

 

.

 

 

“i already have – and he’s gone, great.” minho watched him leave, the door shutting behind him with a heavy ‘bang’. their apartments were very similar to one another – from the layout of the kitchen to the doors that were meant to close automatically to prevent a fire from spreading. admittedly his was bigger overall, and definitely more lived in, but he could manage living here for a while.

 

the company seemed nice enough too.

 

minho blinked at his thoughts. he didn’t need to manage here, he’d call seungmin up tomorrow morning, and the company was passable at best. it didn’t matter if chan had pretty lips and a nice smile, so did seungmin.

 

“right. keep it together, lee minho,” he whispered to himself, slapping his cheeks to wake himself up, “it doesn’t matter how cute the idiot is, it’s the idiot who left you homeless for god knows how long.”

 

mind back in gear he walked over to the main kitchen area, the flat was open plan but the walls dissecting the place felt like gateways. chan must have fun living here.

 

the boxes piled up in the living room and the woefully empty interior of the house itself spoke on the contrary but minho paid it no mind.

 

he shuffled through the kitchen cabinets and groaned. most of them were empty or full of ramen noodles and pasta. he wanted snacks. what kind of single man lived without snacks in his house – he opened the fridge – and beer! this was terrible he had to move out as soon as he could.

 

minho let out a whine, and slumped onto the counter, the top cool against his cheek. he was always running a little hot, but today had been especially stressful and either chan never turned his heating off or he didn’t know how to. he was just finding more and more reasons as to why he would not be staying here after tonight.

 

he picked soonie up from where he was brushing his legs and jumped onto the counter, depositing the feline onto his lap.

 

“hey there, baby,” minho cooed, nuzzling his head, “how’re you feeling?”

 

before soonie could dignify minho with an answer chan entered the kitchen.

 

“here,” he said, holding out a black shirt and a pair of blue shorts, “i hope it’s okay. sorry it’s all i had.”

 

minho shrugged and walked over to the recliner, side stepping chan’s outstretched hand and plopping down onto it, “this is very nice, sturdy.”

 

“uh…” chan trailed off, mouth open as he stared at minho. he looked from the pile of clothes in his hands to the cat nestled against minho’s cheek. he gave soonie a helpless look. soonie purred as minho stroked him, turning away from chan.

 

 _traitor_ , chan mouthed and then motioned towards his bedroom, “thanks? the bathroom’s in there by the way.”

 

minho bopped his head and swapped the clothes for his cat. soonie wrapped his tail immediately around chan’s arm and minho shot them both a curious look. he smiled up at chan, ignoring how he looked a little star struck, “thank you, these are fine.”

 

 

.

 

 

chan watched minho leave, breath caught in his throat. that smile had felt the closest to minho’s actual smile and the man was _very_ pretty, it should be illegal to be that attractive in sweats.

 

soonie nudged his hand and chan blinked down, startled out of his thoughts. he stared up at chan imploringly, as if to say _alright, mate?_

“i don’t know.” chan huffed out a laugh, “no clue, lil man.”

 

he went to sit on the recliner, ignoring how warm it was, and perched soonie softly onto his lap, hand soothingly stroking his back. soonie’s fur was soft under his fingers and he smelled a lot like every other cat did, but he had a vague hint of honeysuckle, it was odd and chan wasn’t sure whether that was the cat or the owner, so he tried to ignore how he liked it. at least it suited the cat.

 

minho came out after fifteen minutes, hair dried and clothes changed. chan couldn’t help but stare. his legs were – they were nice. he had really nice legs. his hands would look nice gripping –

 

chan blinked dumbly as minho got closer. right, not something he should be thinking about. his face felt like it might be burning, but minho didn’t seem fazed so chan acted as if it wasn’t happening.

 

minho knelt down in between chan’s legs, the collar of his shirt loose and showing off a lot more skin than chan was comfortable seeing on someone he thought was attractive and who was a little bit too close to his dick. he was petting soonie and speaking to him in a baby-ish voice, it was cute and from this close chan could see the mole on the tip of his nose and the fact that he had a dimple on his upper lip – a ‘love charm’ he remembered it being called.

 

minho looked up, eyes catching his and chan fidgeted. the man was looking at him like – like, he wasn’t sure _what_ , but it was hooded, and one corner of his mouth was slightly upturned, and it was all too much for chan to handle right now.

 

he was a beautiful man and chan was weak against beautiful things.

 

“bed,” chan blurted out. immediate regret washed over him as minho’s expression morphed into something approaching a mix between surprise and amusement.

 

“not even a first date?” minho fluttered his eyelashes at chan.

 

 _god, i wish._ chan gulped, staring at his lips – they were soft looking and pink. he shook his head abruptly, “i meant you can take my bed, to sleep.”

 

“what about you?” minho asked.

 

chan shrugged, uncaring, “the recliner, i can just –“

 

“nope.” minho interrupted, standing up. chan gritted his teeth, beign beautiful clearly didn’t prevent him from being annoying.

 

“we can both share the bed.” minho said simply. nothing about the statement was simple for chan. he had a _single_ bed, that was a disaster and a half waiting to happen.

 

“it’s a single.” minho was looking at him like _he_ was the unreasonable one. chan felt a little like a fool when minho shot him a stern look, jaw twitching, he must have been gritting his teeth too.

 

“well it’s a good thing you’re short.” he said hotly.

 

chan gaped at minho. soonie purred sweetly, mocking. they were both in on it, chan had lost his one ally.

 

the cat jumped out of his arms and into minho’s waiting ones.

 

chan shot him a betrayed look, but the cat ignored him, content to just purr softly as minho stroked him.

 

“you’re not much taller than me.”

 

“don’t sulk.” minho laughed.

 

“i’m not sulking.” chan said as he sulked.

 

minho smiled in response and beckoned him into the bedroom. chan followed him as if he didn’t live here and instead of minho _he_ was the guest. what was happening.

 

he sent a quick text to jisung.

 

 

 

            | **you:** _come over tomorrow, pls, i have big problem_

           

            | **sungie:** _y_ _our dick?_

 

            | **you:** _come over or i’m sending this to ajumma_

            | **sungie:** _spare me i’ll be there nice and early_ _please don’t send that to my mother_

 

 

 

chan entered his room and watched minho survey his surroundings. it was a modest room, a single bed up against the wall closest to the bathroom, a desk under his only window, a single chair that had come with the flat, and a closet built into the wall.

 

minho walked up to the chair, sat on it, made a face and then promptly handed soonie to chan and then left.

 

chan stared down at soonie, “well, that was weird. wasn’t it lil man?”

 

soonie didn’t reply.

 

minho came back in carrying a soft looking mint green blanket and layed it over the chair, softening the look of it up a little. it looked homier now, especially when he took soonie from him, hands brushing his – chan tried valiantly to not focus on the touch – and placed him in the middle.

 

soonie meowed twice, staring up at minho as he stared back, and then lay down seemingly content with whatever telepathy chan had just witnessed.

 

then minho jumped onto the bed, laying there spread-eagle for a second before he shuffled under the blankets and got comfortable. chan gawked when he looked up, mouth tilted, and patted the space free next to him, “aren’t you coming?”

 

chan scrambled into bed at once. he lay stiff and unsure of what to do with his limbs.

 

he wanted to take his shirt off, but he had a feeling that might cross a line. they stayed there, in his single bed, on opposite sides – barely touching. like opposing poles on a magnet. north and south. hot and cold. minho shuffled to the side and chan watched the way his hair fell into his eyes, now closed as he tried to get some sleep.

 

his hair was as black as the night, soft looking and shiny. it contrasted against his own. chan reached up to take a strand of it in his hand - his hair was blonde right now, curly and rough to the touch from the amount of work he put it through over the years.

 

if changbin was here he’d wax poetic about their differences, something about star-crossed lovers or the opposites attract nonsense that chan had no time to indulge. fate wasn’t something he believed in, but lying here, with a beautiful boy next to him, he felt a little different. maybe it was the time of the night, maybe it was the fact that he was on high alert. he wasn’t sure.

 

something had changed.

 

his eyes slowly drooped, eyelids weighed down with something unseen and drifted off to sleep, hands curled around empty air.

 

.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> the end is a bit rushed, it's because I wanted to end it there but wasn't sure how to exactly :/


	3. Chapter 3 lol

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> “yo!” he greeted loudly.
> 
> the phone went flying.
> 
> both minho and the boy went lunging for it.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> lol im back?

* * *

 

the light coming into his room woke chan up slowly, warmed his body and then reached his face. his eyes fluttered as he contemplated just not moving, but then his bladder started to protest and spoke for him.

 

he opened his eyes to a face inches away from his own.

 

he jerked back, startled at their sudden proximity, “fuck.”

 

chan was sure last he remembered minho had been on the other side with his back facing him. he marvelled at how, despite their closeness right now, they weren’t touching at all. minho was even curled up around his extra pillow, fingers reaching out towards chan’s shirt.

 

he seemed like a cuddler.

 

chan got up slowly, lifting the blanket off of him and then extracting his legs from underneath first. minho shifted at one point, freezing him in place, before chan realised that would look stupid if minho woke up now – it wasn’t like he was doing anything bad, just trying to get out of bed without waking minho up.

 

once he succeeded, he fist bumped his reflection in the mirror that was propped up against his desk and went into the bathroom for a shower.

 

when he came out, steam following him from the bathroom, minho was no longer sleeping and the bed had been made.

 

“hey, how –,” chan was cut off as minho ran into the bathroom behind him without a second glance, small bright green bag held closely to his chest, “right. okay.”

 

he rubbed the water out of his hair and hung his towel on the heater, then he grabbed the brush off his desk and tried his best to fix his hair. it was still wet at the tips, but he decided to let it air dry for today. on the way out of the bedroom he grabbed his phone off the bed and stroked soonie as the cat followed him into the kitchen.

 

he rummaged around his fridge and was a little disappointed with what he had, normally it would be fine, but he had a guest today.

 

he cooed sweetly at soonie, “i’m going to have to go grocery shopping when your dad’s at work.”

 

he paused as he took three eggs out – that sentence, it was a little weird. he couldn’t quite place _why_ , but it felt out of place, strange. he scrunched his eyebrows and shook his head, “whatever, fried eggs and french toast okay with you?”

 

soonie meowed once and then trotted off into the living room.

 

chan shrugged and began to whip the eggs for the french toast as he heated a pan up and added some oil. once it was hot enough, he cracked two eggs and searched through his cupboards for another wider pan. he found one buried a little underneath the plastic baking bowls and stood up triumphantly, brandishing the pan like a trophy. “i knew you were somewhere here.”

 

as he was about to put some bread into the toaster, minho came out of the bedroom.

 

chan looked between minho and the toaster before he asked, “do you want some french toast? i made eggs too.”

 

“yes, please.” minho replied politely, taking a seat on the only highchair in his kitchen. chan watched him, a little embarrassed, before he turned around abruptly to make the rest of the food. he didn’t normally care, but maybe woojin was right, he couldn’t keep living like this.

 

“you can cook?” minho asked when the silence began to stretch.

 

“i can survive.” chan laughed, and then threw the question back at him, “can you?”

 

“i can cook.”

 

chan hummed softly, and then without realising – “maybe you can show me sometime.”

 

minho blinked at him as chan turned around to set the plates up and then smiled, “sure.”

 

chan smiled back and filled a small glass jug up with water so they didn’t have to keep getting up to go to the sink. minho offered him the highchair just once but chan declined.

 

“so,” chan said, swallowing the bite in his mouth, “how old are you?”

 

minho raised an immaculately groomed brow at him, chan touched his own bushy ones – maybe he should join changbin at the salon next time – and answered, “i’m twenty two.”

 

“oh,” chan gaped, he’d thought minho was older. but the man was only a year younger than him.

 

“did you expect me to be older?” minho grinned, one hand resting delicately under his chin as he gazed at chan.

 

chan broke the eye contact quickly, unable to keep it for longer than a few seconds. he started to play with his food, “well, kind of and no?”

 

minho let out a laugh, “what does that mean?”

 

chan rubbed the back of his neck sheepishly, swallowing the bite of food in his mouth before he clarified, “you look kind of wise but also youthful? at the same time?”

 

 _way to go chan, you sound like jisung_. he mentally groaned, his eloquence with words disappearing in front of a pretty boy.

 

“i’ll take that as a compliment,” minho fluttered his eyelashes in response and chan felt something flutter in his stomach in tandem. he rubbed his tummy, annoyed, and told it to get a grip.

 

“please do,” chan sighed, scooping the last of the toast into his mouth, “so, what do you do?”

 

“choreographer,” minho said, finally done with his food. he set the fork and knife on top of the plate delicately.

 

chan perked up, “anything i might have seen?”

 

minho started to nod before switching it to a shrug, “maybe? do you know _tentastic_?”

 

chan blinked rapidly, fork paused midair and mouth gaping, “the new idol rookie group?”

 

“yup,” minho popped the ‘p’, nodding shyly, eyes on anything except chan. he’d normally just proudly exclaim his achievements with his chest puffed, smirk in place, but something about chan’s earnestness was disarming, “i choreographed their debut song.”

 

“oh my god, mate. that’s so cool!” chan gushed.

 

minho blushed softly, grinning wide, “thanks.”

 

“my friend, his name’s jisung, he really loves that group. he’s been trying to memorise the dance.”

 

minho smiled, teeth showing, extremely pleased with the response. he nodded at chan, “what do you do?”

 

chan shuffled in his seat, silence dragging a little bit as he took his time to eat, “i’m a producer,” he answered simply.

 

“oh?” minho leaned in closer, eyes lighting up with curiosity and a little bit of amusement, “anything i might have heard?”

 

chan shifted back, away from the attention from the pretty boy in front of him, eyes gleaming in the morning light. he was so unused to someone other than his family and close friends being that into his work. he let the butterflies flutter around in his belly this time, unable to keep eye contact with minho but happy for the earnestness in his gaze.

 

“mainly soundcloud stuff, you know.”

 

“can i listen to something?” minho asked, excited, and then quickly added when he looked down at his watch, “after i come back from work.”

 

chan nodded his head in silent agreement as minho finished off the last of his toast, mind a little fried from the interaction. a nice kind of fried, like fried chicken or eggs. he stared down at his eggs, willing himself not to grin stupidly.

 

it didn’t work and minho shot him a perplexed look.

 

chan shuffled over to mihno’s side, grabbing his plate, but minho took it back with a shake of his head, their fingers brushing minutely and sending a spark up chan’s arm. he pulled it back, surprised, but minho didn’t seem to notice, “i’ll do it. thanks for the breakfast.”

 

chan nodded in thanks, a little too dazed to argue against him, and picked soonie up from where he’d been resting next to minho’s chair.

 

“he must really like you,” minho commented, humming under his breath as he washed the dishes.

 

chan looked up and, without taking his eyes off minho, said, “i think i like him too.”

 

soonie meowed and minho’s soft laughter in response lit up the room.

 

 

.

 

 

 

minho left for work with clear instructions to chan about when he’d be back and when and what to feed his cat soonie. chan nodded at minho’s back as the door closed behind him with a resounding click.

 

he picked soonie up and snuggled him up to his face, he nuzzled his cheek into his fur with a soft sigh. chan shuffled over to his room and placed soonie on the bed as he rummaged around for his laptop. he found the sleek silver device hidden under the music notes on his desk and collected the papers and puts them away in a drawer to look at later.

 

he set up his laptop on his desk and then sent a text to his friends.

 

 

( _thr33 sirachas_ )

 

            | **you:** _okay so_

| **binnie:** _hyung! you’re alive!_

 

            | **you:** _im here to explain what happened_

            | **youg:** _where’s jisung?_

 

            | **biinie:** _how should i know?_

 

 

 

as he was about to send the next text his front door bell rang. loud, high, and annoying. it startled him and agitated soonie, causing the cat to yelp and scramble under the bed.

 

“oh no,” chan crouched down, head to the floor and hand outstretched, as he softly called the cat over, “please come out lil man, it’s dirty down there, you’ll get sick.”

 

when soonie didn’t budge and his doorbell rang again, three times in succession, chan huffed loudly and jogged over to his door, yanking it open – only to come face to face with jisung, takeout bag in his hand and watermelon juice in the other.

 

“from mum,” he muttered, rolling his eyes as he barged through, “you took your time for someone who was freaking out last night.”

 

“i wasn’t freakign out,” chan huffed.

 

“uhuh, ok dude. whatever you say,” jisung replied, placing the juice and takeout in the kitchen and then hoisting himself onto the counter fluidly, “so, what’s the fire?”

 

“have some respect for your elders please,” chan admonished half-heartedly. he was more focused on the juice, he grabbed a cup and pured himself some, relishing in the taste. jisung’s mother was a blessing to this country, and her watermelon juice was by far the best he had ever had.

 

he capped the bottle and placed the rest of it in the fridge – he would get minho to try it during dinner later –  and walked back over to stand next to jisung.

 

jisung looked down, staring at soonie who had now sidled up close to the counter and was staring right back. they both stayed like that, frozen for a few seconds, unblinking, until chan came close.

 

he watched, a little disturbed but a lot amused as they both turned around in unison, expressions eerily similar, and looked at him.

 

“since when did you have a cat?” jisung asked, wide eyed and the glint in his eyes looking a step away from crazed.

 

“meow,” soonie said.

 

chan smiled down at soonie as he approached and lifted him up into his arms. he lovingly stroked the cat’s lithe back as he sighed at jisung, “it’s minho’s cat.”

 

“a min-who?” jisung asked, getting more confused by the second. he was once again caught in the gaze of the cat despite soonie having lost interest in the younger boy.

 

“the boy whose apartment i flooded,” chan explained, blushing.

 

“he has a cat?” jisung asked, disregarding chan causing immense property damage in favour of the cat.

 

chan raised an eyebrow at him, exasperated, and then nodded down at the evidence in his arms, “yes.”

 

“cool,” jisung grinned, easy going, “we should call felix over.”

 

chan rolled his eyes but didn’t otherwise dissuade his friend as he quickly got his phone out and dialed felix’s number, instead chan just walked over to his armchair and took a seat. he was only half listening to jisung invite felix over to his house, more interested in soonie and how soft his fur was – he wanted to brush it but he didn’t have minho’s number and didn’t feel comfortable going through his stuff to search for one without his permission.

 

“what a dilemma,” he gazed down sadly at soonie, who simply purred softly, “sorry lil man.”

 

“who are you talking to?” jisung interrupted loudly, startling chan so badly that he jumped and nearly sent soonie toppling to the ground.

 

“woah there!” chan scarmbled to hold onto soonie, bringing him up to his chest and tightening his grip in relief as his heart beat rapidly, echoing in his ears and flustering him. he glared at jisung, who was crouched with his arms outstretched at the other side of the room, as if doing so would have helped _at all_.

 

well, at least it was the thought that counted.

 

“you’re a menace, jisungie,” chan scolded lightly, shoulders loosening.

 

jisung laughed it off and told him that felix would be here soon, “maybe like 15 mins? give or take? he doesn’t have to work today until 9.”

 

“he’s still working at that studio?”

 

jisung was quiet for a moment too long and chan got up, worried, “jisung?”

 

“he had to quit,” jisung replied quickly, phone held up close to his face as if to hide it – or well, _something_. chan narrowed his eyes but didn’t pry, knowing he’d have the time to do that later when felix got here.

 

“okay.”

 

“okay?” jisung went wide eyed, disbelieving that chan would let him off the hook so easily.

 

chan sent him a smile.

 

the colour drained from jisung’s face so chan dropped the façade, laughter bursting out of him, “oh my gosh, your face!”

 

“hyung!” jisung cried, launching himself at him.

 

 

 

.

 

 

 

minho came home – _no_ , he reminded himself angrily, _not home, temporary residence, refuge_ – to find two unfamiliar boys and no sign of either soonie _or_ chan. he narrowed his eyes as he entered the flat and found a line of shoes haphazardly placed along the side of the wall. they didn’t look like chan’s and they were definitely _not_ his.

 

the door was also unlocked. the irritation hit him full force – whoever these people were they were clearly not mannered.

 

his eyes narrowed even further when he came upon the kitchen and it was a certified _mess_ , takeout containers, empty soda cans and two soju bottles, also empty, all littered over the counters.

 

he walked a bit further, leaning over the side to see into the sparsely decorated area chan called his ‘living room’.

 

there were two boys.

 

they were both leaning against each other in front of the empty arm chair, an iphone held up between them as they silently watched something being played, completely unaware of minho’s presence.

 

minho rolled his eyes and walked into the bedroom, figuring he’d deal with them after he was a little more refreshed, except he was startled once he entred by the sight of chan on the bed. the boy was curled up lazily around himself, soonie nestled softly into his chest.

 

“well,” minho whispered to himself, quickly snapping a picture, “that’s cute.”

 

he stared down at the end product, couldn’t help the smile threatening to take over his face. he was unsure if he should keep it, but after a minute decided he would set it as chan’s contact picture. well, once he got the boy’s number.

 

with a final nod, minho leaned over chan, pulling the blanket up to his waist, to lay a soft kiss on soonie’s little head.

 

as he walked out and stood under the archway connecting the rooms, he placed his hands on his hips and stood with his feet shoulder-width apart. he contemplated seriously whether or not he wanted to make his entrance funny, but he was unsure – he didn’t know these boys after all.

 

“hmm,” maybe next time.

 

“yo!” he greeted loudly, startling the smaller of the two so bad the boy jerked violently and the phone in his hand went flying.

 

both minho and the boy went lunging for it, gut wrenching at the thought of it falling to the floor. 

 

the blonde got to it first, fingers brushing against the side of the phone, but despite his speed he was too short and only ended up skimming it.

 

minho pushed forward, his long arms coming in handy as he grabbed the phone midair, landing heavily on his knees with a painful thud.

 

“hurts,” he hissed, rubbing his knees with a pout.

 

he got up after a few seconds and held his hand out for the blonde. the boy just stared.

 

“oh my god,” he said, a little in awe, before quickly taking his hand, “thank you so much!”

 

the other boy on the floor nodded as if agreeing before ‘barbie girl’ blared through the room from the phone in minho’s hand.

 

“this yours?” minho asked, holding the phone out.

 

blonde nodded with a deep red blush slowly spreading down his neck as the boy on the floor burst into high pitched laughter. minho smiled softly, confused and amused at the situation.

 

a picture popped up on the screen, another boy with brown hair in a mullet and big square glasses, he looked handsome.

 

“here,” minho gave him his phone.

 

the boy took it back gratefully and answered the phone in a hurry, hissing, “when did you change my ringtone?”

 

minho turned to face the smaller of the two, “who are you?”

 

the boy beamed up at him, bright and smiling, shooting finger guns, “jisung!”

 

minho cracked a grin and shot them back, “minho.”

 

jisung seemed a bit amazed by the reaction, just staring before his eyes crinkled in laughter, “you’re cool, hyung!”

 

“thanks, you’re cute kid,” minho chuckled, “how do you know chan?”

 

“channie-hyung?” jisung struck a comical thinking pose that would have looked ridiculous on anyone else, but on him for some reason looked endearing, “we go waaaaay back! i work with him too.”

 

minho tilted his head, considering, “producer?”

 

“yup!”

 

chan took this moment to come stumbling into the room, bleary eyed and yawned, “inside voice jisungie, please.”

 

jisung laughed it off. minho got the feeling that this was a regular interaction. chan definitely didn’t seem to mind. soonie was no longer with him, but he had cat fur all over his clothes. chan scratched at his belly idly, pulling his shirt up and flashing a small hint of skin. minho thought he spied a set of abs, but he wasn’t sure.

 

 _i wanna find out_ , he had the thought, but quickly banished it to the back of his mind with a frown, berating himself.

 

he’d be leaving soon anyway, there was no point in getting attached.

 

* * *

 

**Author's Note:**

> come talk to me about these dorks on [twitter](https://twitter.com/pakiinnit) if you want :)


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